Masias did not expect that the Dionians would set up traps in the town of Mearo, which caused great trouble to the offensive forces. He could only let the light infantry catch up and assist the heavy infantry to drive away the "rats", and at the same time urged reinforcements to join the battle as soon as possible.

The soldiers of the First Legion certainly could not have traps throughout the town, especially in the area where they and the exiles lived, which over time had entered.

At this time, the First Legion soldiers who had been waiting for a long time immediately came forward and intercepted the Syracuse people in the narrow streets and fought head-on.

The Syracuse soldiers continued to move forward. Once the front was blocked, they would attempt to go around the streets on both sides, and the other teams of the First Legion would intercept them in the new streets. The Syracuse people's attack was like water. Once blocked, the soldiers behind them would bypass and move forward; and the defense of the Dionian soldiers was like stones, blocking every street that the enemy advanced.

As the situation developed, the attacking troops of the Syracuse people actually circled from both sides to the rear of the First Legion.

The more than 5,000 soldiers of the First Legion also included more than 1,000 light infantry and light armored soldiers, and their troops were already in short supply. If it weren't for the more than 3,000 exile soldiers who returned immediately after escorting their families and blocking the attack from the rear of the Syracuse soldiers, the First Legion would have been attacked from the front and back.

Now the First Legion, the exile soldiers and the Syracuse coalition fought fiercely on various streets, gradually forming a circular defense circle centered on the small Antonios command.

Apart from the adjutant and 20 guards and commanders, all other troops were sent out. Although he was sitting on the top of the three-story building that was originally the ruling mansion of the Mearo Town, he seemed calm and composed, but in fact he was uneasy: the First Legion was surrounded by the enemy and had no other way out except to fight to the death! And he no longer had a reserve force. Once a street was broken through by the enemy, it would be a disaster for the entire First Legion!

So Antonios not only put the long shield and spear at his hand, but also asked the adjutants, guards and some messengers to be fully armed. If there was any danger, he had to lead the troops to fight in person.

"Ding!Ding!Ding!Ding!..." A messenger ran up the roof of the stairs panting: "Report the commander of the army, east... east our Allies defended very steadily, and there was no situation of being forced to retreat."

"It seems that these exiles, like they said, have been fighting against the West Kyle people in the western mountainous areas for many years, and even sometimes have to fight against wild beasts. Whether it is courage, fighting spirit or fighting skills, we can rest assured for the time being." The adjutant said comfortingly.

Antonios also breathed a sigh of relief. What he was most worried about before was the performance of these exile soldiers, so he sent a special messenger to keep an eye on it and report the situation at any time. At this time, he said: "Our brothers must be responsible for the defense on three sides. They have more than 3,000 people, and only one east side is responsible for one. It is also necessary to be able to withstand the enemy's attack."

"Sir, do you think we should draw some soldiers from them to form a new reserve team?" the adjutant made a suggestion.

Antonios was slightly moved. He looked up at the sky and the sun had begun to go west. He looked ahead again. On every street, the soldiers of the First Legion were fighting bravely. The number of people was far less than that of the other party, not only resisted the enemy's attack, but also seemed to cause some chaos to the other party.

"The real battle has just begun, don't worry, wait a moment before talking..." Antonios said in contemplation.

Due to the continuous bombardment of the crossbows over a day, the streets in Mearo Town were not only covered with gravel and rubble, but also large pieces of stone lying in the middle of the road from time to time. This made the army of Syracuse not only unable to unfold in the street, but also due to the above reasons, the dense infantry formations were cut and could not effectively form a joint force to push the Dionian soldiers. Instead, the Dionian soldiers drilled into the formation cracks caused by terrain obstacles and fought closely. In such a close-range battle, the Dionian soldiers' long shields and short swords exerted their power.

At the same time, the soldiers of the First Legion did not project both javelins in their hands before the battle as usual, but handed them to the comrades in the rear. They either stood on stones and threw them condescendingly, or took advantage of the enemy's feet to slip and lose protection, throw them out from the gap between teammates in front, causing damage to the enemy. This is the main reason why the First Legion has fewer soldiers in each street than the Syracuse people, but they can withstand the opponent's attack and even gain a slight advantage.

After learning about the battle situation ahead, Masias was surprised by the combat effectiveness of the Dionians, and was anxious that his advantage of being too large to be exerted. After thinking, he ordered the troops blocked behind to climb up from the houses in the streets and then climb over, thus providing support to the soldiers trapped in the streets and forcing the Dionians to divide their troops.

Originally, these ladders were just a habitual preparation for Masias before siege. With so many crossbows, he had never thought about using it this time, and now it came in handy.

The soldiers carried it and began climbing from a distance from the battle.

The Greeks, whether rich or civilians, basically had four walls and a roof, and an open-air courtyard in the middle. Therefore, it was very hard and dangerous for the soldiers of Syracuse to climb in, climb out, climb over one dilapidated house after another, and sometimes had to fight against the Dionian light infantry hiding in it.

More than half an hour later, Antonios received an urgent report from one messenger after another: "The commander of the Legion and the captain of the First Battalion, Giogris, said that the enemy infiltrated the residential buildings and threatened the flanks of his troops. He did not have more soldiers to intercept them and asked to retreat first!"

"Report to the commander of the Legion, the second captain Zantiparis..."

...

"Retreat, let all the brigades and exile soldiers retreat to the pre-war deployment to the pre-war area and line up to defend! Go and notify Spitt to lead all the light infantry here to gather!"

"yes!"

Before the battle, Antonios considered the worst-case scenario when discussing with the captains, so there were remedies, but he did not expect to be forced to this last step so soon: "This general in charge of the Syracuse army is not simple!"

Antonios sighed inwardly, he looked up at the sky again, turned around and asked Shelofinis: "The riot you planned should have begun, right?"

Of course, Serofenis knew that the situation of the First Legion was not very good at this moment. He answered without hesitation: "Based on my understanding of Antrapolis, since he dared to make a request to you, he must have been fully prepared. And from the current time, it may have been over."

Chenofenis's words made Antonios slightly open, and he said in a deep voice: "Since that's the case, let the First Legion and the Syracuses engage in this final battle here!"

The soldiers of the First Legion retreated slowly in an orderly manner.

Due to the limitations of the terrain and concerns about the javelins that might be shot from the enemy's formation, the Syracuse soldiers did not attack fiercely and were also approaching cautiously, which allowed the companies and detachments of the First Legion to withdraw from the streets smoothly.

The soldiers of the exiles did not go so smoothly. When they retreated, they lacked training and experience, so they were a little panicked. The Syracuses took advantage of the situation to strengthen the attack, which led to the intensification of chaos. Fortunately, in this direction, Syracuse had the least strength, and the exiles were only responsible for the defense in the east and had enough soldiers. Moreover, they all had a deep hatred with the Syracuses, so they would never turn around and escape even if the casualties caused by the chaos, so they eventually withdrew from the street.

The consul's residence where Antonios is located is the administrative center of Mearo, and is not adjacent to other residents' residences. Due to the advance preparation, the First Battalion and the Exile soldiers smoothly surrounded it, forming a thick and dense enough circular array.

However, the soldiers of the Syracuse coalition troops who followed the enemy to gather in front of the formation were not prepared much, and there were chaos and gaps between the teams from each street.

The First Legion did not fully base itself on defense, but seized the opportunity to counterattack. One company and the other company launched a short charge in an orderly manner.

While a company launched a charge, the Seventh Battalion on the roof of the consul's mansion immediately projected javelins and arrows into the area regardless of the numbness of his arms.

This tactic of the First Legion put the soldiers of the Syracuse coalition in front of him into chaos...

Seeing this, Masias, who rushed to the rear of the team, hurriedly asked the trumpet soldiers to blew the attacking trumpet, and at the same time ordered hundreds of mercenaries under his command to form a long line to drive the retreating soldiers back. If he did not listen, he would rectify the Dharma on the spot. He also asked Sikuli, Katanai, and Leotini, the city-state tyrants who followed him to catch up to appease their somewhat turbulent army.

Because of the fear that the exiles would not cooperate tacitly, and also that the number of troops in the First Legion would fall into the enemy's siege after leaving the formation. Coupled with the trust in what Serofenis said, the cautious Antonrios did not choose to charge in a comprehensive manner, thus giving the Syracuse coalition a chance to breathe. Chaos was recovering, and the generals were commanding the soldiers to re-arrange the battle formation...

At this time, Masias issued an order: "Go and carry a few crossbows outside the town."

The adjutant advised in surprise: "General, our soldiers are fighting with the enemy now, and I'm afraid we may easily hurt ourselves..."

Thanks to Reuss, the hero of Alfasir, Qiankun Feiyu, Zhan Billy, and zxcvbnmqdgn for their rewards! Your support is my greatest motivation for writing!!
Chapter completed!